A restaurant that offers a menu with items in other languages can be confusing, but at Jin's Korean Grill, it's no matter. These Korean dishes have reader Linda Hartmann hooked, and she's found her favorites and wanted to share Jin's authentic Korean flavors with us, too.

Linda's Take

Linda first discovered Jin's when she purchased a Groupon. When a Groupon for a restaurant pops up, she likes to grab it, whether she's heard of the restaurant or not. With Jin's, she found a favorite. "I just really, really liked it," she says. Not only is the food great, but she likes the cozy atmosphere. Because it's small, though, she wonders how many people know about the restaurant. "People don't know they're here yet," she says.

She calls Jin's Korean a "fusion" style Korean place, because it has other Asian flavors, too. Most of the Korean food is considered fresh and healthy, but those who want decadent Asian favorites — "they want their fried foods," she says of Ozarkers — can still find them.

We start with the Korean pancake with seafood ($8.99) at my suggestion. In addition, we start with the appetizers that everyone gets: kimchi, pickled radish, broccoli and potato. They all come served in little glass containers. "I like the kimchi better this time. I guess I didn't know what to expect the first time," she says. "The more you eat it, the more you get used to it and the more you like it."

The pancake has a starchy feel, but it's loaded with vegetables and seafood. "There's big chunks of seafood in there," she notes.

For her main meal, she opts for the chicken bento box ($12.99) with vegetable and shrimp tempura, rice, sushi, a spring roll and chicken. The sushi looks freshly made, she says. "It's kinda messy, but it's very good."

She appreciates that the spring roll is cut on a bias and it's not overloaded with cabbage, nor is it fried. "I think that they make their own here," she says. The tempura is fried, of course, but it's a light, crispy breading and not greasy at all. "I like that," she says. She also notes that the rice is perfect for eating with chopsticks because it's sticky and starchy.

Katie's Take

We've visited Jin's before, but not since it's moved to a smaller location. The term "hole in the wall" does hold some weight here, because it really is a small area. The restaurant, though, has a consistent dinner crowd.

I typically know to expect a fresh, authentic meal when I can't pronounce much on the menu. I have my few Korean staples, so I go from there.

I'm not new to the idea of the Korean pancake, and I'm excited to try Jin's version. First off, the appetizer is huge, and I enjoy the thin, must-eat-it-with-a-fork pancake. It's not thick like a traditional Western pancake. Even so, this appetizer is a meal in itself. The breading is actually quite light and flavorful and doesn't overpower the vegetables and seafood. I also note that there is quite a bit of seafood in the pancake. Jin's isn't skimping here. The sautéed onions add a bit of crunch, too.

We get to enjoy our vegetables while we wait, and like Linda, I've gotten used to the pickled, tart taste of kimchi. The potatoes might be my favorite of our mini appetizers, because I enjoy their sweet flavor and appreciate how it complements the tart kimchi.

For my meal, I order the dolsot bibimbap ($11.99), but I pay a dollar extra to have it served in a hot stone bowl. Ordering bibimbap without the hot stone bowl is almost like getting a pizza without the cheese. It's just not the same, and really, what's the point? Bibimbap is a traditional Korean dish that contains rice, vegetables and some kind of meat. I opt for shrimp.

When our server brings the dish, I can still hear the sizzle of the rice cooking on the bottom of the hot stone. "It's hotter than you think," our server says. Indeed, it is. I pour the tasty chili sauce over the dish and hear the rice sizzle and pop. It's fun to stir the dish up to cook and sizzle different parts. It all tastes great. The vegetables make it fresh, and the shrimp and rice still give it a comfort-food feel.

The Dish, the Restaurant

Though the restaurant started out in a location a little farther south on Campbell Avenue, owner Jay Jung says the smaller location is less expensive and he and his mom, chef Jin Jung, can focus on paying more for quality ingredients. "We decided to change locations to save money," he says. And because Springfield is restaurant central, he says that it is difficult to attract new customers, but once they come, they're hooked. "We have a lot of regular customers now," he says. "It's worked out really well."

Jin, Jay's mother, owned a popular restaurant in Korea before moving to the United States, so continuing to cook and bring authentic flavors just made sense. "She's well-known with Koreans," Jung says. "They come because of her."

The seafood Korean pancake highlights a lot of vegetables, because "Korean people love vegetables." In addition, Korea is a peninsula, so seafood is inexpensive and widely available. "That's how the seafood pancake got started," he says. And, of course, it's made in house.

The bento box that Linda enjoys is more of a Japanese staple, but he's put a Korean spin on it by adding shrimp tempura — "In Korea, you can get that anywhere on the street"— and in addition to the chicken, he can also add Korean-style barbecue. The sushi is also made in house, and it's a bit different from Japanese or Americanized sushi, because it has cooked beef, sesame oil instead of vinegar and is rolled in seaweed.

The dolsot bibimbap is another top seller. "That's a very well-known, basic Korean dish." In Korea, Bibimbap is a staple advertised everywhere, he says.

Jung highlights his mom's experience as the best way to get authentic flavors. "She's had a lot of experience before she even did this," he says.

A Korean woman who has a hit restaurant in Korea and then opens one up in Springfield? Well, I'd say so. And in Springfield, we don't see so much authenticity every day. Jin's, while the menu might be hard to read, has authentic flavors that the adventurous, and even timid, diner can enjoy.